Print Recipe

Roast Chicken

About this recipe

Who loves roast chicken? We do! It goes great with mixed green salad and some form of roast potatoes. Having a party? Roast 7 or 8 chickens ahead of time and get drunk with the guests (things will be fine).

Instructions

Go out and buy yourself a nice:

4-5 lb. roasting chicken.

Wash it well and pat dry with paper towel. Make 2 slits in the chicken’s breast and 2 slits at the top of its legs. Then cut up:

2 garlic cloves (into 5 large pieces total).

Salt and pepper each slit and shove in a piece of garlic. Throw the last chunk into the cavity.

Then season with:

salt, black pepper, and chopped fresh rosemary.

Sprinkle inside and out with salt and pepper (making sure to get under the wings). Sprinkle rosemary only on the outside and put chicken into a roasting pan, lying on its back, on a rack (Jack!).

Roast at 350°F using a meat thermometer. Cook covered (with lid or aluminum foil) for the first ½ hour. Then uncover and cook another 1½ hours until ready (internal temperature is 180°F). Baste frequently.

Squeeze fresh lemon over top with 45 minutes to go or when three-quarters cooked.

Notes

Wrap in foil and let stand a few minutes before carving.

You can actually leave it in foil for more than an hour—great if having guests.

You can put a little white wine in the bottom of the roasting pan. If you do, don’t use lemon since they don’t mix.

Remember, high rake in a shallow pan (most times a cookie sheet is just fine) and make sure you pat dry, otherwise the skin won’t brown.

For a tastier, more fattening version: rub the chicken inside and out with a mixture of butter, fresh minced garlic, olive oil, rosemary, salt, and pepper, or with a mixture of chopped fresh sage, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

If you want roast potatoes, add them with 1 hour of cooking time left, or take the chicken out and let it stand while the potatoes cook. Mix potatoes with salt, pepper, garlic salt, and rosemary before adding to the roasting pan.